COHEED RETURNS

School and life in general have been extremely intense these past few weeks. With the radio and MTV being the easiest access to new music, I am saddened to say that Justin Bieber, Tay-Tay, and good old Miley have been my best friends as of late. Thankfully, though, I’m about to kick ‘em all to the curb and will no longer have to listen to Bieber’s pre-pubescent relationship woes. Gosh, he can be so whiny sometimes.

In a mere three weeks, quite a few talented artists are going to start releasing new albums left and right. Spring is a hot time for bands to release new albums in order to get fans amped up for their SUMMER TOURS.

Here is what our spring release line-up is looking like right now:

COHEED AND CAMBRIA- Year of the Black Rainbow- April 13

MGMT- Congratulations- April 13

CIRCA SURVIVE- Blue Sky Noise- April 20

MINUS THE BEAR- Omni- May 4

Mmmm it’s going to be like Christmas for my IPod.

 

Which of these new releases am I most excited for? Uh is “all of the above” an answer?

Right now, I’m in a slightly screamo/sweet guitar-riffs/big hair kind of mood, so lets start with Coheed.

Claudio Sanchez, lead singer of Coheed and Cambria.

 

Take a look at the big scary man above. Semi-frightening, right?

Now listen to this song:
 

Can some one please tell me how a creature of this size can produce a sound so soothing? Just one of life’s greatest mysteries, I suppose.

Giant fro or not, Coheed and Cambria is back with some sweet new tunes. New album, Year of the Black Rainbow is set to be released on April 13^th. Two new tracks, Here We Are Juggernaut and Broken, are available for our listening pleasure on Coheed’s website.

After listening to Juggernaut 11 times in the past hour, I have decided to do the unthinkable and actually PURCHASE the CD when it comes out.  And I’m not talking about half-assing it and buying the cheaper version on ITunes. I’m going to march right over to Best Buy on April 13^th, pay the $11.99, tear off the crispy plastic wrapping and pop Year of the Black Rainbow right in to my old-school boom box. Claudio’s voice does not live up to its full potential in mp3 quality.

Coheed and Cambria

“This is not your place, no this is not your playground, it’s my heart,” just one of the emotionally twisting lines from Juggernaut that Coheed is so famous for.

Coheed and Cambria have been around since the mid-90s, but did not release a full studio album until The Second Stage Turbine Blade in 2002. The have since released four more studio albums, two live albums and many special-edition releases. Fun fact- all of Coheed’s albums are concept albums that reveal a science fiction storyline called The Amory Wars, a series of comics written by Claudio Sanchez.

Coheed is on tour headlining right now and will be stopping off in California for a little festival called Coachella in mid-April. Then the guys are hopping back on the road for a two-month tour with Circa Survive. You have two options: 1.) Patiently await my stellar review of Coheed and Circa’s  performance in Central Park on May 26, or 2.) GO SEE THE MAGIC FOR YOURSELF.

The GREAT Bamboozle.

The decision has been made.  I WILL be attending this year’s Bamboozle tour. Call me an emo-scenester all you want, but it will be me who has the last laugh while I am watching Weezer, Saves the Day, MGMT, Motion City Soundtrack and Minus the Bear (among many others) rock the f*ck out at the Meadowlands in NJ on May 2nd.

Courtesy of TheBamboozle.com.

What started as a three-day music festival in Asbury Park, NJ in 2003 has now evolved in to a country-wide tour. In addition to New Jersey, The Bamboozle roadshow now stops in Chicago and California. The line-up varies from state to state, and to be quite honest, New Jersey has the best line-up. I’m not just saying this because I’m partial to New Jersey (it’s my home-state and I first started going to The Bamboozle there in 2005), take a look at the line-up and decide for your self:

May 1st:

Saves the Day

Paramore

Drake

Angels & Airwaves

Bullet for my Valentine

Relient K

(This is just a list of my personal favorites, click here for the full line-up.)

May 2nd:

Weezer

MGMT

Girl Talk

Say Anything

Motion City Soundtrack

Kevin Devine

Piebald

Hey Monday

Minus the Bear

OK Go

(This is just a list of my personal favorites, click here for the full line-up.)

When I first started going to The Bamboozle in ’05, my friends and I would get tickets for all three days. Decked out in our studded-belts, converse and band-tees, we would hop around the festival seeing all of our favorite musicians, chasing cute boys in bands and trying to get autographs and pictures with as many band members as we could. Right before Fall Out Boy became huge, they performed at The Bamboozle in 2005. It was easily one of the best performances that I have ever seen AND I somehow managed to get a picture with drummer Andy Hurley.

Andy Hurley from Fall Out Boy. Courtesy of FriendsorEnemies.com.

Gosh I was so much cooler back then than I am now. Too bad I lost the picture, though.

Not wanting to (completely) relive my punk-kid days, I am only going to this year’s Bamboozle on Sunday, May 2nd. I don’t think my body can handle mosh-pits and crowd-surfing to that extent anymore.

I must stop and vent for a second though- it really bothers me when people won’t go to concerts of bands they love because of the “young punk-kids” that are going to be there. Yes, middle-schoolers with multiple piercings and mohawks are annoying, but should that stop some one from seeing a great performance? NO.  Just throw blunt-objects at them, sit back, relax and enjoy the show like I do!

Despite the masses of black-nail polish-wearing 14 year-olds who can’t even tell you what I Am The Movie is, I still plan on having a great time and seeing all of my favorite bands.  Check back in May for a full Bamboozle report!

And, for your viewing pleasure, I have included a few select pictures from my High School band-stalking days:

Motion City Soundtrack Concert in 2005. Me and my friends Ali, Lauren and Jackie with Justin Pierre, lead singer of MCS.

Me with Matt Watts and Tom Gryskewicz of the Starting Line at the Nokia Theatre in 2005.

Ben Jorgensen of Armor For Sleep and I outside of the Surf Club in Ortley Beach, NJ summer 2004.

Get Me To Coachella!

The Coachella line-up was announced about two weeks ago. I am absolutely DYING to go. Unfortunately, I do not have the funds or the time to fly out to California for a random weekend in April, but those who appreciate epic music festivals should take advantage. Instead of being bitter about not being able to go, I am providing readers with all they need to know about planning the perfect Coachella weekend!

Courtesy of Wired.Com

Taking place Friday, April 16th- Sunday, April 18th at the Empire Polo Field in Indio, California, patrons can purchase a three day festival pass for a mere $269. Sounds a bit steep, but the line-up is completely worth it in my book. Who exactly is so wonderful that is performing at Coachella, you ask? Find out:

April 16th:

Jay-Z
Passion Pit
P.O.S.
Ra Ra Riot
The Dillinger Escape Plan
Vampire Weekend
(This is just a list of highlights of my favorites performing on the 16th,
for a full list of performers click here.)

April 17th:

Coheed and Cambria
David Guetta
MGMT
Muse
Portugal.The Man
RX Bandits
Tiesto
Tokyo Police Club
(Click here for a full list of performers for the 17th.)

April 18th:

Gorillaz
Kevin Devine
Phoenix (2010 GRAMMY winner)
Thom Yorke
(Click here for a full list of performers for the 18th.)

Sold yet?

If you’re from the northeast, like me, getting to the festival could be the biggest money-sucker of the trip. The Coachella website has several links to find “affordable” transportation methods, but the airfare listed on the site is hardly affordable. Luckily, I have conducted my own independent research and have found decently priced airfare.

A roundtrip ticket from Newark International Airport in New Jersey to San Diego International Airport (88 miles from Coachella) for April 15th- 19th only comes to $319 including tax and fees. April is a great month to fly long distances and save money because it is not a holiday or major vacation time. Also, arriving and departing to and from your destination is much cheaper if you chose to fly on a weekday. Click here to modify your flight.

There are many options for lodging at Coachella. Since the festival takes place in a huge field, concert-goers are able to rent a 10×30-foot spot to camp out in for the three days for a flat rate of $55. The campsite opens at noon on April 15th and closes at noon, Monday, April 19th. This definitely sounds like the best and most affordable option. Hotels nearby the festival site that weekend are so astronomical I’m not even going to bother posting about them.

Courtesy of E-How.com

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I know when I even hear the word “camping” I automatically cringe, but it’s not exactly “roughin’ it” at Coachella. Onsite camping offers free showers, a general store, an Internet café (with free WiFi), portable toilets and handwashing stations, cell phone charging stations and, of course, recycling. Would you expect anything less in Cali?

OK so here is the equation: One Three-Day Festival Pass + One Roundtrip plane ticket + One camping spot= $643 and copious amounts of fun and an unforgettable experience.

Alright, maybe I lied earlier. All this talk about Coachella is making me EXTREMELY bitter that I am not able to go.

Bon voyage!